good idea

Harry Reid seeks alternative uses for Yucca Mountain

WASHINGTON -- If nuclear waste is not going to be sent to Yucca Mountain, what to do with the desert site?

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid today asked the Government Accountability Office to begin consultation with the state of Nevada and federal agencies on other uses for Yucca Mountain.

Reid requests that the offices explore alternatives for the facility 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, including: The development and testing of renewable energy technology, training grounds for the military, arms control activities, a lab for underground experiments or a hide-away for the government in case of emergency.

“Now that forward progress on making Yucca Mountain the dump site for the nation’s nuclear waste has ended, we now need to keep this from being a total loss to the taxpayers and find a responsible way to use the Yucca facility,” Reid said. “Given the site’s location at the Nevada Test Site and Nevada’s vast clean energy resources, I believe we should begin by looking at alternative uses focused on our national security and clean energy efforts.”

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How ironic would it be for this place to be used to study clean energy technologies? It's a fine idea.